A Far Off Memory
by triedunture
Summary: A man from Cloud's past appears suddenly in Hollow Bastion. LxC, ZxC


I can't move. My eyes stare straight ahead, and my arms are dead weight at my sides. I'm in the back of an orange truck. Dusty. Hot. The sun is bright. He is speaking to me, though I can't see him and I can't answer back.

Best friends, he says.

I would never leave you.

And I remain motionless. His blood runs into my field of vision, against the toe of my boot. He is dead. Tears stand in my eyes. But I cannot move.

Blackness.

"No!" I scream, sitting bolt upright in bed. My chest heaves for air, my skin is covered in sweat, and my hands are shaking where they lay on top of the white sheets. I try to get my breath back and glance at the tin alarm clock on the bedside table. Both hands point to the number three. Steady fingertips slide onto my shoulder, and I jump, startled.

"Nightmare, Cloud?" Leon's deep voice rumbles beside me. He looks up at me, his grey eyes narrowed with scrutiny. His long dark hair is hanging in his face, and the shadows are playing along the muscles on his bare arm.

"I'm fine," I say quickly, still panting and not sounding fine at all. I carefully lay my head back down to the pillow and close my eyes. "Go back to sleep," I tell him.

I feel his eyes still watching me, but after a few moments he gives up, shifting on the bed for a comfortable position. Leon twines his feet with mine, giving me a small piece of connection that we both appreciate after a dream like that. He has them too, he told me once. Dreams where Heartless just keep coming and won't stop. Dreams where that potion you thought you had isn't there when you need it. Dreams where someone falls down and won't stand up again.

I let him think that I have those types of nightmares too. But I never told him that I don't dream of battles. My dreams are much worse.

My dreams are of hell.

I stare at the ceiling the rest of the night.

Leon wakes up early in the morning, and I pretend to wake up too. We dress together in the dark. We have lots of work to do. Sora's in town and wants to start hunting the Heartless that have sprung up lately. Leon mutters about how this interferes with his restoration work, but I can see the glint in his eyes. He's ready to fight. He can't wait to defeat some of those creatures that plague the town.

"Do you want to join us?" he asks, buckling his Gunblade at his hip.

Hell yeah. I pull on my last article of clothing, my right glove, and nod. I could use a workout.

Sora's already waiting for us in the marketplace, his Keyblade slung over his shoulder. He grins at our approach.

"Hey, sleeping beauties. Finally ready to get the job done?" The boy swishes his weapon through the air experimentally. His spiky brown hair bobs with his excited movements.

"Don't get cocky," Leon warns in that adult tone of his. "There are hundreds, maybe thousands of Heartless roaming around. We're not going to get them all in one day."

"Never know unless you try," Sora retorts, leading the way through the twisting alleys of Hollow Bastion.

Leon turns and shares a smirk with me. "Were we ever that brash?" he asks.

A flash in my mind's eye: A long blade through my gut, skewering me like a piece of meat, and a brazen, burning strength running through me, making me grab the weapon that was killing me and throwing—

"I…" I choke on my words. Leon's face is pinched, making the scar between his eyes crinkle. I don't want him to worry; he couldn't have known. "I guess not."

I'm not fooling him, I can tell. He opens his mouth to question me further, but is interrupted by Sora's yelp of glee.

"Come on, slow pokes! I'm not leaving any for you!" He's slashing his way through a band of Purebloods, their dark forms cowering before his Keyblade.

Leon looks at me pointedly one last time before jumping into the fray. I'm close on his heels, relishing the calming rhythm of an easy fight. These Heartless are small, not very powerful. Their only strength comes in numbers, and that's diminishing by the second. I watch my allies out of the corner of my eye, more out of habit than necessity. Sora is pure energy. The boy puts his entire being into his attacks, whether it's a complicated aerial move or a simple head-on thrust. Leon's style is more methodical. Watching him is like watching an artist. Every move is planned and executed with efficiency. No step is taken without reason. No attack is wasted.

Even before we became lovers, Leon and I would spar together, sometimes with blades, sometimes with bare hands. He was good. Sometimes better than me, and that's saying something. We still fight in that empty field a short distance from town, never stopping until we're both covered in sweat and dirt, never admitting defeat or fatigue. Training brought us closer together: Admiration. Respect. Trust. (That was a big one.) Finally, more-than-trust. And I suppose the best name for it is love, though we've never discussed it.

I watch him take out three Heartless in one stroke of his Gunblade, and I think, yeah, I got to love a man who can move like that. There's nothing else like it.

"Whew!" Sora wipes his brow with a gloved hand, surveying the now-empty alleyway. "Good work, guys! That took no time at all."

"That's not the end of them," Leon reminds him.

I pick up a few scattered potions that were dropped during the battle, listening carefully to some small noises nearby. "There should be another band of them around that corner," I say, motioning with a jut of my chin. "You guys up for more?"

"Yeah!" Sora yells rowdily.

"If you are." Leon smirks at me. I give him a small smile in return.

"Okay. All together. Let's try and beat our best time," Sora says, giving us a thumbs-up.

At Leon's signal, all three of us dash around the corner, blades at the ready. We expect a crowd of twittering Heartless, maybe a stray Nobody or two. Instead, we come face to face with something from my dreams.

From my hellish nightmares.

My eyes widen. The tip of my heavy sword dips towards the ground. I feel my companions pause beside me as well. The newcomer leans easily against the brick wall, arms crossed over his chest. A dark head lifts to look at us. There is a spark, bright with Mako, in his blue eyes. He speaks up in a voice that haunts my motionless sleep.

"Long time no see," he grins and salutes me with two fingers, "Cloud."

_An orange truck. Dusty. Hot. _

_My best friend._

_I would never leave you._

A name, rough with disuse, falls from my slack lips. "Zack…"

Just as in my nightmares, I fall into blackness.

I wake up in my room. No, it's Leon's, I remind myself. I just share it, this plain white room in a restored house where the whole gang lives. I've been placed in bed with my armor and boots removed. Leon's doing. He'd never let my muddy boots mess up the sheets. My head is pounding, but there are no bumps that I can feel with my fingertips. Just a headache, then.

My first urge is to find Leon. Find out what's happened. If I'm going crazy and just imagined everything. Wouldn't be the first time my memory has failed me. Leon understands. He's told me something similar occurred to him in the past.

But the person who stands in the doorway is not Leon.

"I'm a real boy. Trust me," Zack says, his hands on the doorframe, making a picture out of his body. That easy posture, that smile. It _has _to be him.

"What happened?" I croak. My voice's not quite up to par yet.

"Well, you blacked out," Zack explains, strolling into the room as if he lives here. Even _I_ don't live here, technically.

"I mean with you. You were…" I shake my head. "I saw you die."

"Hey, even I don't understand exactly what's going on." Zack sits on the edge of the bed, his hand resting on my knee. "One minute, I'm floating around in this big void. The next thing you know I'm awake, walking and talking." He runs his hand through his wild black hair. I used to love touching that hair. He looks exactly the same as the last time I saw him: violet SOLDIER 1st class uniform, wide belt with the Shin-ra logo on the face, and his pale, pale skin. "My working theory is your little Keyblade friend has something to do with this. All sorts of strange things have been happening since he started messing around in the other worlds. So the others tell me." He shrugs and leans back a little, his hand moving to my calf, still under the covers. "Aerith…she's here too."

I nod slowly, and I feel the color draining from my face. I had nearly forgotten about Aerith. Damn, things just keep getting more complicated. They had been an item, once upon a time. I rub at my eyes with my gloved fingers.

"Have you spoken with her?" I ask.

"Yeah." Zack grins a lop-sided grin. "She said she'd been praying for me to return."

My lips quirk despite myself. That's Aerith. Always praying, always wishing.

"She's pretty angry with me," Zack elaborates, patting my leg now in a steady beat. "I told her I didn't come back for her."

"What?" Now my head is really splitting.

"I told her the truth," he says, leaning over me, his hand running up my leg to my hip. "I came back for you."

I watch, frozen, as he dips down towards my face. My gaze falls to his lips, murmuring inches from my own.

"I feel it in my gut. You brought me back, Cloud." His breath is warm against my face, and his blue eyes have drifted shut. A thousand memories in my mind: the clang of my regulation saber against his newly-won Buster sword, the hard-packed dirt outside the barracks, and Zack, always smiling and helping me to my feet. And later, a soft kiss and a laugh. And even later, more than that. Twisted sheets. A gasp in the night air. My very first love. Zack.

I place a hand on his cheek to stop him from leaning any closer. "Zack…" I wrack my brain for the words, searching his face for a clue, but instead I see Leon over his shoulder, standing in the doorway. His face is pale. His eyes are…gone. Like he's not inside anymore.

Zack notices my gaze and twists around on the bed. "Leon, right?" he says cheerfully. "I hope you don't mind if I borrow Cloud for a few. We have a lot to catch up on."

My stomach falls to my feet; Zack winks at him.

"Leon—" But I'm too late. He's already vanished from the doorway. I can hear his footsteps ringing on the wooden floor until they fade away entirely. I bury my face in my hands and take a deep breath before looking back up at Zack again. "A lot has changed since I last saw you," I begin.

"I should say so." Zack lifts his arms triumphantly, gesturing to himself. "I'm freaking resurrected!"

"Not just that, Zack," I mutter, swinging my legs over the side of the bed and grabbing my boots. "I'm with someone right now." I shove my feet in the boots hurriedly, only bothering with half the buckles.

"That Leon guy?" Zack's eyebrows raise high on his forehead. "No offense, Partly Cloudy, but how do you communicate with each other? Grunts and whistles?"

I stare at him, this apparition sitting next to me. I'm speechless because he thinks so little of Leon, a man I respect so much. And because…no one's called me that nickname in ages.

"Listen." Zack drops his voice lower and leans into my space again. "I don't want to guilt you into anything, and I'm not here to shake up your new life. I didn't expect you to sit under a rock waiting for me; I'm glad you're doing fine! But after four years of being tortured…"

We both shiver at those memories. Mako burning through my veins. My mind tearing itself apart. Watching Zack go through the same thing. I remember him talking to me, though I was nearly always catatonic with poisoning, all through the night.

_Don't focus on the pain._

_Soon it won't hurt._

_Stay with me, Cloud._

Hell. We went through it together.

Zack continues, "And then I took that bullet for you, and then clawed my way out of the darkness to be with you..."

His hand, covered in worn leather, brushes the side of my face. I snap out of my daze of recollections and meet his fierce blue eyes.

"You can't expect me to give up now," he says, his eyes glowing with his innate strength. "I'll never give up," he hisses, and swoops down to claim my mouth.

We fight for dominance, just like we used to. It's another battle, another match with teeth instead of swords. Zack always brought the fight everywhere he went. But something's missing. It doesn't feel like I remember. With Leon, we leave the fight for the sparring ground. Leon…

I tear away from that hot, wet mouth and push Zack away. "I'm sorry," I say, standing up with only a slight tremor in my legs. "I can't."

I grab my Buster sword from where it leans against the wall, clipping it easily to the slim harness on my back. As I leave the bedroom, he calls after me.

"Take your time. Please."

It's the closest Zack's been to begging, as far as I know.

I find Leon at our sparring ground where he usually hides from people. It's just a field on the outskirts of town, far from the walking paths. He's sitting under a shady tree on the edge of the meadow, slumped against the trunk and picking at blades of grass beneath him.

I sit down next to him silently, waiting for him to speak first. I listen to the insects buzzing in the waist-high grass. Leon slowly shifts so that his head is pillowed on my chest, his cheek rubbing against the leather strap that holds my shoulder armor. I slide gloved hands into his messy hair, trying to give wordless reassurance.

"Do you still love him?" he asks after an eternity.

"Zack is…" I sigh, because my feelings are too chaotic to explain in one breath.

Leon snorts, a harsh sound blown into the fabric of my shirt. "You _do _love him still. How can you stop loving a ghost?"

I bristle because I'm wary of anybody telling me what I feel before I'm even sure of it. "I've moved on, Leon," I say resolutely.

He sits up fully, looking at me with those sharp feline eyes of his. He's waiting for me to prove it.

I shake my head. I'm desperate to tell him what he is to me, but the words fall apart in my mouth. I can only make a helpless sound in the back of my throat before diving down to meet his lips.

If kissing Zack was like a swordfight, Leon is like the walk home after a battle. There's some residual pain, tiny bites and teasing licks. But there is also a lot more pleasure, rising like a yellow sun above the horizon of sensation. Leon's mouth is a slow burn, a comfort.

I pull away gingerly, watching Leon's face for his reaction. His grey eyes drift open again, and his gaze hardens. He turns his head and spits into the grass like he's swallowed something vile.

"You taste of him," Leon whispers, pushing himself up from the ground.

I struggle to get up and go after him, but a familiar hand lands on my shoulder, holding me in place. I turn to see Zack has snuck up behind me and is pressing a finger to his lips. I stay silent until Leon has stalked well over the hill back towards town.

"Sorry, didn't mean to eavesdrop," Zack says sheepishly, scratching his head with his gloved hand. "Just thought with all these monsters running around, you might need some backup. But it looks like you do okay for yourself these days." His eyes dance over my body, more muscular and toned than in the past. His gaze snaps back to my face after a split second, motioning in the direction Leon went. "Does he always snarl like that? I imagine that gets old."

"Put yourself in his shoes," I retort sharply, standing up in a rush. "He hasn't done anything to deserve this."

"Excuse me, Cloud. Sorry my timing stinks," Zack snaps back just as caustically, standing with me. "Next time I won't bother coming back to life!"

"I didn't mean…" I sigh, raking a hand through my blonde hair. "It's just a lot to take in. I mean, how exactly did you come back?"

"I told you," he says, crossing his arms defensively. "I can't remember much. Death does that to you."

I'm reminded of another man who's been magically restored in this new, dark-infested world. I tap my gloved fingertips on my lips in thought. "Just like Sephiroth…"

"Wait, Sephiroth?" Zack's eyes widen. "He's alive?"

I nod, tearing a tall piece of grass from the ground and sliding it between my fingertips. "He's still alive. I can feel it. He has strong ties to the darkness now." I drop the slip of green back to the dirt. "He's even more powerful than ever."

"What the hell are you doing here, then?" Zack gestures to the peaceful meadow like it's garbage. "You should be out looking for him, tracking him down. We need to stop him. Now!"

"I was. Looking for him, I mean. But then…" I shrug.

"Leon again?" Zack leans against the tree with his hands cushioning his head, his legs crossed at the ankles. "Yeah, I can see how that would be distracting. A few kisses from lover boy do weigh heavily against protecting the universe as we know it."

"Leon didn't stop me from searching for Sephiroth. I'm staying here to help for awhile. They need me." I don't know why I'm defending Leon when he didn't even give me a chance to explain things to him, but I feel like I should. After all, he's not here to speak for himself.

Zack snorts. "I'm sure that Keyblade kid and the rest of the gang can hold down the fort here. Let's go fight Sephiroth together. Just the two of us on our own quest, like we always planned." He leans in towards me, his eyes shining with eagerness.

He reminds me, in this moment, of Sora.

"I can't leave," I tell him simply.

He blinks at this and shrugs. "Then I'll stay with you."

"No, Zack." I pinch the bridge of my nose with my thumb and forefinger like I always do when I'm frustrated. Leon says it's endearing. "You're my best friend, and I'm so grateful for all you've done. But I belong here. With Leon."

"Wow." Zack scrubs a hand over his face and sighs. "You sure?"

I nod, dropping my eyes to the ground. "I loved you. It was the first time I'd ever loved anyone. But now…something feels wrong."

"Huh." He gives a humorless chuckle. "Guess I'm…too late. Things won't ever go back to the way they were." Zack wipes at a stray tear that's tracking its way down his face. "Don't get me wrong; I want you to be happy." His voice is strained, and I can't stand seeing him like this. I wrap one of his hands in both of mine, squeezing reassuringly.

Sora barrels into us, his Keyblade slashing wildly. I instinctively pull back to save my arm. Zack growls and reaches over his shoulder for a sword that isn't there anymore. The Buster is on _my_ back now, and I grab it without thinking, ready for anything.

"Get away from him!" Sora screams at Zack, the tip of his weapon aimed at his throat.

"Sora, we were just—" I try to explain.

"Cloud! He's a Nobody!" Sora shouts over his shoulder at me.

"I'm a what?" Zack asks.

"No, he isn't," I say, thinking of all the memories we share, all the mannerisms he exhibits. He _has_ to be Zack.

Leon crashes through the underbrush and into the field, Gunblade out and ready. "It's true," he pants. "Tron detected a new program that the Darkness is using to disguise Nobodies. They've downloaded your memories of Zack into a Nobody to trick you!"

"What?" I spin around to see Yuffie, Aerith, Cid and Merlin enter the meadow noisily.

"Geez, Leon, when we ran into ya on the road and told ya what was happening, you could have waited instead of running ahead on your own," Cid gasps out, chomping on the end of his cigarette.

"Wait. The Darkness? Downloaded? This doesn't make any sense." Zack tries to reach out to me, but Sora blocks his way. "I'm not here to trick you, Cloud."

"You may not think so," Aerith says gently, though her staff is poised for battle in her hands. "The memories seem so real, you just think you're the real Zack."

"I _am_ the real Zack," he cries, turning to face me again. "Cloud, remember the time you taught me to whistle? And I told you…"

"'At least I can learn one thing from you,'" we say together. I remember that day clearly. We'd been sitting next to a river, making mouth harps out of grass. Those words had become our little running joke. My grip on my sword loosens, and my weapon droops.

"Of course he remembers. It's what he's been programmed to do," Leon mutters, circling around Zack with his Gunblade still trained on him.

"Listen, young man," Merlin speaks up, "do you remember where you were when you woke up from the black void you spoke of?"

Zack's eyes cloud with confusion. "I…I told you. I woke up here."

"Here?" Merlin advances, pointing to the ground beneath his feet with both hands. "Your first recollection after awakening from death is appearing in Hollow Bastion?"

"Yeah…" Zack looks to me as if for confirmation. "I guess."

"How did you know," Merlin stresses each word, still advancing, "that Cloud would be here?"

"I just did." Sweat stands out on Zack's forehead as his brow furrows in concentration.

Merlin is now so close to Zack that he reaches out and touches his shoulder lightly and asks, "What was your mother's name?"

"I…don't know," Zack says slowly. "Oh god. Oh god. Does this mean I'm a…a…"

"A Nobody," Aerith supplies. "They're not real…just empty shells."

Her voice is sad, and when our eyes meet, I can see in her the same desolation I feel.

"Why?" I speak up suddenly. "Why would he be sent here? He hasn't tried to hurt me."

"I wouldn't!" Zack…but not-Zack…shouts.

A voice comes from the sky.

"No, he wouldn't. His mission was much simpler." A cloudy black portal opens in mid-air, and the tip of a sword appears, followed by black boots. Sephiroth soon floats down to the ground before us, lightning swirling around him, proof of the power he wields. Every weapon is out and ready for a fight. I see Yuffie even gripping an extra throwing knife between her teeth.

"Poor, failed experiment," the sword master says in a silky voice, gesturing to Zack with an outstretched hand. His glowing green eyes fasten on me, and he tosses his silver hair. "Sound familiar?"

Sora lets loose a battle cry and lunges at the taller man with all his might, but an elegant sweep of the Masamune sends him flying backwards. The boy grunts in pain and clutches his injured arm.

"Yuffie! Potion!" Leon orders and the ninja runs to Sora's side.

"What do you want, Sephiroth?" Leon growls, edging closer to me. Even now, he would defend me. In the face of impossible odds.

"I planned on using the conquered Ansem's technology to build this drone," he gestures toward Zack, "in order to entice Cloud out of this dreary world. We're connected, you see." He flashes long, white teeth at me. "Everywhere you go, I can follow. But since you remained stagnant in Hollow Bastion, I've grown restless. I'm limited to this world or the insufferable world of Hades. I wanted to burn down tender new worlds, feed my power. I needed you to open the door for me out of this place. But useless machinery won't suffice," he hissed.

"I didn't know," I hear Zack whisper softly. "I didn't know."

"I believe you," I tell Zack, though he isn't really Zack at all.

I don't take my eyes off Sephiroth; he's too fast. Even one small mistake could mean the end of someone's life. He notices my calculating stare, and his face glows with pleasure. He doesn't just live for the battle. Sephiroth _is_ the battle.

"So touching," he murmurs. "But once again, Cloud, it's just you…and me." He holds out his left fist, a white light blazing around it. My eyes widen. He's casting a spell.

"Get down!" I shout at everyone. The field around us explodes in a rush of light. The wind roars in my ears, and I strain to see through the debris that the spell has kicked into the air. I see Leon close by. He's pounding on an invisible barrier between us with the hilt of his Gunblade. He shouts something I can't hear. Sora and the others are with him, scattered in the confusion. Merlin and Aerith's lips are moving in concentration. They're trying to counteract the magic, but I know it's too powerful.

If Sephiroth wants me alone, that's the way it's going to be. I keep my guard up, squinting in the chaos around me. I can't even see my enemy.

I feel not-Zack at my side, his gloved hand on my shoulder.

"I'm here," he says in my ear.

The wind dies down. We're in the middle of a dark void. Serphiroth has transported us into the Darkness.

"Stay close," I whisper. He may not be Zack, but he's unarmed and vulnerable. That makes him my responsibility.

"Do you remember, Cloud, when you were the rescued instead of the rescuer?" Sephiroth's voice echoes around us. "I liked you then. Weak. Helpless."

His breath ghosts down the back of my neck. A flick of silver hair grazes my arm.

"Honest."

I whirl, but he's faster than me. One swipe of his weapon and I'm reeling, the gash in my side bleeding heavily. I fall to the dark floor with a pained groan.

"Heads up!" Zack shouts. He throws himself at Sephiroth, ready to fight hand-to-hand, but he's hit with a powerful fire spell and falls.

"I don't need _this _anymore," the long-haired man laughs. He raises the Masamune above his head and brings the point down with one swift motion.

"Bastard!" I scream, making a dive for my Buster sword nearby. But Sephiroth kicks it away easily. He moves a little to the side, shifting his long coat so I can see…

He has Zack skewered on the ground. The sword sticks through his chest, and he gasps in pain, each breath only bringing him more.

"Things come full circle," Sephiroth says darkly, pulling the sword out with a sickening crunch. "Except this time, you both fall for good."

He advances towards me, his long coat and hair swinging, and everything is jumbled in my head again. He could be walking through my burning city, or away from Aerith's still body, and I'm frozen now like I was then, and nothing makes sense.

My last thought is of Leon. If he were here, he'd have a plan. Maybe two. I close my eyes and see his face.

"Cloud!" My eyes snap open and Zack is somehow standing, Buster in hand, behind my attacker. He thrusts the weapon directly in Sephiroth's midsection, as far as it will go. The tip of the blade slides through his belly and hovers inches from my nose.

I'm still alive. Time to move.

While Sephiroth is still stunned, staring down at the sword sticking through his body, I roll to the side and grab the hilt from Zack's slack hand. He falls, exhausted and bleeding, to the ground once more.

"You think you know me so well," I hiss at Sephiroth, yanking the Buster from his body and slashing again. "You think you own me, that I'm some toy you can play with!" I deal blow after blow to Sephiroth's torn body. But he still stands. "You think you're some sort of god!" I sweep his legs out from under him with a well-aimed swing, and he's finally down. "Well, guess what?" I position the point of the sword against his chest, pushing down with all my might until his ribcage cracks under the pressure.

His green eyes are wide with surprise. His mouth is open, but he can't speak. Blood gushes forth from his chest, spraying my arms and face, leaving a puddle of bright red in the middle of black nothingness. I lean heavily on my sword, panting for breath, and whisper to Sephiroth.

"You can die just like the rest of us."

I twist the sword ferociously, watching the life drain from his glowing eyes until they're just dead coals in his face.

The darkness fades from around me. I'm back in Hollow Bastion, in Leon's field. Sephiroth's body is motionless in the grass. I fall to my knees beside it, gasping for breath, my strength completely gone.

"Cloud!" Leon is beside me, holding me tightly against his chest.

"Don't…you'll get the blood all over…" I murmur. He's such a clean person and I'm worried about what all this blood will do to his jacket.

"Don't care," he whispers back, his breath hot against the shell of my ear.

"Cloud! Come quick!" Yuffie cries, and I look up to see her and Aerith standing over Zack a few feet away. He's slowly fading away into nothing, breaking apart piece by piece. He holds his hand in front of his face and sees it happening.

"Is this…how I die?" he asks, struggling to speak.

"Nobodies don't really…" Aerith begins, hovering over his battered body.

"Yes," I say, crawling towards him on the dusty ground. "You're dying."

"Did…did we get him?" he wheezes, his eyes losing focus.

"Yeah, we got him." I reach out and clasp his gloved hand in mine. It's hard to hold onto, like shifting sand.

"I'm falling apart," he says, panic coloring his voice.

"It won't hurt soon," I say in a rush. "You won't feel anything."

"Huh. I used to…tell you that. Remember, Partly Cloudy?" He grins at me through teeth clenched with pain. He's almost totally gone now, like an old hazy picture. "I'm…a little scared. Not too much, but you know." I feel his not-hand clutching at me. "I'm not Zack…I'm not even real."

Another hand joins mine in holding Zack's. It's Leon, his strong fingers wrapping around mine as we hold onto the fading pieces of my friend. "You did good, Zack," he says softly. "You did damn good."

I hold on tighter, but he's slipping away. "Thank you, Zack. For everything," I say. I see him smile. And then he's gone.

My hand is empty except for Leon's fingers entwined with mine.

Yuffie shifts nervously on her feet. "We're all going to need therapy," she mutters under her breath. Aerith glares at her.

"Well," Merlin says to himself, tugging at his long beard. "It seems we might need to revise our estimation of Nobodies. Perhaps they can feel. Or believe they can. And really, what's the difference?"

Leon helps me to my feet. I reach towards the hilt of my sword, still embedded in Sephiroth's chest. Leon gently turns me away.

"Sora can get that," he says. The boy nods and grabs for the Buster, unable to avoid the blood covering the handle. He grunts with the effort and, in the end, Cid has to help pull the blade free.

"We'll clean this up for ya, kid," the old mechanic tells me, watching me warily.

The whole crew makes its way back into town silently. I lean on Leon, the wound in my side burning with pain. Aerith does a quick healing spell as she passes me, a sort of peace offering, but I still move stiffly.

When we reach the house, Leon leads me to his room, away from the others. He doesn't speak as he sits me down in a rickety chair and undresses me. I'm a mess; my shirt's torn and stained, my shoulder armor is cracked, and my gloves are sticky with blood. In fact, blood is everywhere. Leon kneels before me and tries to clean my skin, but the white towel he uses turns red and heavy with liquid. He wipes carefully at the flecks drying on my face.

"Most of it's not mine," I manage to say.

He nods, flushing out my wounds with some of Merlin's homemade elixir. His hands are shaking; I've never seen that before.

I intend to ask him if he's okay, but I end up saying, "I wasn't going to leave."

He stops tending to my wounds and lowers his forehead to rest on my relatively clean knee.

"I love you," he says, his hands fisted on top of my thigh.

"Yeah." I run my bare hands through his hair. "Me too."

He lifts his head and I lower mine. We meet in the middle, a kiss like the sunrise. His touches are gentle, but I can feel the bridled urgency itching beneath his skin. I feel the same way. He peels off his own bloodied clothes and looks at me like he can't believe I'm here. He holds my face between his hands and we just look. Stormy grey. Glowing blue. I kiss him again.

Tomorrow, we'll talk about Zack.

Tomorrow, we'll talk about Sephiroth.

Tonight, I just want to love Leon. And no nightmares keep me from him.


End file.
